


Where the Heart Is

by bazinga01



Category: The Bold Type
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-10-03
Updated: 2018-07-13
Packaged: 2019-01-08 12:19:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 12
Words: 9,238
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/12254265
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bazinga01/pseuds/bazinga01
Summary: In the future, Kat and Adena have a son named Jalil. This is not a full-length single fic, but rather a collection of snapshots of their life as a family, with Jalil at different ages.(Ficlets will be added to the collection as I write them, just as I do with my main ficlet collection. Since this is a particular verse, I wanted to keep all of the ficlets together in their own place. All the prompts come from messages I receive on my tumblr, unless otherwise noted.)





	1. Chapter 1

Table of Contents

1\. Table of Contents

2\. (the prompt that started this verse) "Kat and Adena's kid gets in trouble for punching a bigot just like his mom" 

3\. Dropping Jalil off for his first day of school

4\. Kat and Adena take Jalil trick-or-treating

5\. Jalil introduces his girlfriend to his parents

6\. Jalil is born

7\. Jalil and Kat's Saturday morning tradition

8\. Jalil has a nightmare

9\. Kat and Adena as new parents

10\. Jalil asks for dating advice

11\. Adena is pregnant

12\. Jalil at Kat or Adena's work


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> "Kat and Adena's kid gets in trouble for punching a bigot just like his mom"

He doesn’t meet her eyes for the entire walk from the admin office to the car, just sulks beside her, arms folded across his chest.

She waits until they’re beside the car and then she folds her own arms, blocks his path to the car door, waits for him to look her in the eyes.

“He was saying mean things, about  _maman_ ,” is what he finally says, and Kat squats until she’s closer to eye level with her seven year-old.

“So you punched him,” she says, not even framing it as a question. They both know what happened.

He scratches at his curly hair, worries his lip between his teeth. “Am I in trouble?”

And it’s hard. It’s  _so_  hard, because yeah he’s definitely got the same fire as she does, but his eyes are all Adena’s, staring back at her, and it’s so hard to be mad. He was sticking up for his mom and she’s proud of him. But she also knows she can’t encourage him to react like this, that it will have worse and more dangerous consequences as he gets older.

“They suspended you for the day, J.”

“I know. Am I in trouble with  _you_?” He stares expectantly, arms still crossed, waits to see what she’ll do.

“A lil bit, yeah,” she nods, purses her lips at him, and he frowns. “ _Buuut_ , for the punch. Not for sticking up for yourself. You gotta use your words, not your fists, dude. You know this.”

She knows he gets it, even though he’s being stubborn about it, and by the time they get home he’s doing alright. He’s helping her put dinner together when they hear Adena enter and his eyes widen in panic.

“ _Helloo,”_ Adena sing-songs, loud and warm from the other room, and Kat smiles.

“Hey babe! We’re in here,” she greets from the kitchen, then gives her son a look. “J, why don’t you tell  _maman_  what you did today?” she says, not letting her tone give anything away and loud enough for Adena to hear, and he glares.

Adena steps into the kitchen, tired but smiling, and presses a brief kiss to her lips, wraps her arm around their son’s shoulders.

“What did you do?” she asks, curious, and then frowns when he looks guilty. Adena turns to her and they share a look, before Adena drops her arm from his small shoulders, turns to face him fully. “Jalil, what did you do?”

His eyes are wide and looking to her for help when she shakes her head, says, “You gotta tell her yourself.”

He sighs, quiet for several seconds while her wife stares at him expectantly, and then admits, “I punched someone at school.”

“You  _what_?”

Jalil cowers, explaining, “He was saying mean things about you and he wouldn’t stop and I got  _so mad_. I’m sorry.”

Adena’s head whips around, searching for confirmation in Kat’s eyes, and Kat nods, tries not to smile when she sees the knowing look on Adena’s face.

“You really are just like your mother,” she sighs, almost resigned, and Jalil grins. Kat gives him a quick wink, over Adena’s shoulder, then goes back to chopping the zucchini. “Come on, come sit with me,” Adena motions toward the kitchen table.

Kat eavesdrops while she continues dinner prep, hears Adena say, “Tell me what happened,” with as much patience as she can muster after an already long day.

They’ll have their own talk later, once J is asleep. But for now, she lets them have their moment, gives Adena the space to have the talk she needs to have with him. Because yeah, it’s about the fact that he punched someone, which is something they both need to address as his parents. But it’s also about  _why_  he punched someone, a conversation Kat is all too familiar with.  

Adena is right—

Jalil is far too much like her sometimes. But she wouldn’t have it any other way. And she thinks that, secretly, Adena wouldn’t either.


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Dropping Jalil off for his first day of school

They walk him to his kindergarten class together.

The hallways are bright and colorful and Kat keeps her arm wrapped loosely around her wife’s waist while they walk.

She sees his classroom and the teacher stationed at the entrance, greeting new students and parents, and she turns, squats down in front of her son so they’re eye level.

“This is you, bud.”

She smiles, reassuring, and he ducks his face against Adena’s leg, shy and still holding her hand. It’s so unlike him that she knows he must be nervous.

“You remember what we talked about?” she says, tilts her head until he’s meeting her eyes, and he nods. “What’d we say?”

A quiet sort of determination settles over him and he stares back at her. “Be yourself.”

“That’s right. ‘Cause you’re awesome, and you’re totally gonna make a new friend today, I can feel it.”

She hears Adena sniffle above her, knows that her wife is trying so hard to hold it together right now.

Jalil smiles, the first real smile since they left the house, and Kat holds her arms out. “Bring it in.” He giggles, lets go of Adena’s hand to jump forward and give her a hug.

She burrows her face into his shoulder, makes a silly noise that makes him laugh harder as his small arms cling around her neck. “I love you, J.”

“Love you too.”

She pulls back, ruffles his hair then whispers, “Go on, give  _maman_  a hug.”

Adena kneels down, wipes at her eye with the palm of her hand and sniffles again.

“Why’re you crying?” Jalil frowns, concerned, and Adena gives him a watery smile.

“Because I am so proud of you,” she says, voice strong, and Kat’s heart aches.

Jalil accepts her answer at face value, says, “Oh, okay,” and Kat laughs.

Adena chuckles too, reaches her arm out, and Jalil leans into her. Kat watches him shield his lips with his hand, whispering something into Adena’s ear that makes her close her eyes, squeeze his small body tight in a hug. She whispers back, gives him one final squeeze, and then pulls away, stands straight again.

Jalil walk up to the classroom entrance on his own and they watch as the teacher greets him with a friendly smile, shows him where his little desk is. He gives them one final wave and then he’s out of view.

Kat pulls Adena into a hug immediately, wraps her arms tight around her and presses a kiss to the side of her head.

“I love you so much.”

Adena sniffles into her neck, murmurs, “I love you too.”

Kat rubs at her back, comforting. “What’d J say to you?”

Adena breathes deep and then steps away, wipes at her eyes and smiles. “He told me he loves me, in Farsi.”

Kat grins, holds Adena’s hand as they walk toward the exit together.

“He knew you needed it.”


	4. Chapter 4

She doesn’t even know why she bothers asking him what he wants to be for Halloween, considering he’s been watching the same old Disney movie, on repeat, for  _weeks_.

But she still asks, and when Jalil shrieks, “Aladdin!”, bouncing on his feet in excitement, she and Adena share a knowing smile.

Their four year-old is obsessed with  _Aladdin_. Like, truly obsessed.

It could be worse. At least he has good taste, even if most of the other kids probably won’t recognize his costume.

It’s a Saturday morning and they’re relaxing at home together. Kat sits on the floor with Jalil, helping him with his dollhouse, while Adena watches them fondly from her spot on the comfy chair.

He’s distracted now, eyes wide and thinking about his costume, when he turns his small body toward Adena.

“ _Maman_ , you can be Jasmine!”

Adena smiles, ignores the look that Kat is giving her when she says, “You think so?”

He grins, races across the carpet over to her. “Yes! It’s perfect!”

Adena scoops him up, holds Jalil in his lap and kisses his head.

“Did you know I dressed up as Jasmine many years ago, before you were born?” she tells him, and he turns in her lap, looks at her with wide eyes.

“ _Really_? Who was Aladdin?”

Adena looks at her, chin tucked against Jalil’s head, gaze full of love and memories.

“Mommy was.”

He whips his head back around, gives Kat a confused look. “You don’t look like Aladdin.”

Adena laughs into his hair and Kat scoffs, folds her arms across her chest. “Hey now, baby J. I was an  _awesome_  Aladdin.” He giggles and tilts his head, like he’s trying to picture it.  

“It’s my turn though. There can’t be two Aladdins,” he informs her, and Kat smiles, sticks her tongue out at him.

“Who am I gonna be then?”

Jalil holds his chin, ponders it for a few seconds. “The Genie!”

Adena can’t stop laughing.

—

She finds a fantastic all-blue outfit, does some fun make-up on her face, and Jalil  _loves_  it. Her wife, however, cannot look at her with a straight face.

Her gorgeous wife, who found herself a new Jasmine costume and looks far too good to just be going trick-or-treating.

She’s not even mad that she’s the genie. Because Adena and Jalil together, as Jasmine and Aladdin, is the cutest thing she’s ever seen in her life.

Jalil is wearing a thermal before they leave, underneath the purple vest, because otherwise it’ll be too cold. As it is Adena keeps worrying over him, telling her they need to bring his real coat too, just in case.

But they leave out the thermal for the pictures, let him wear just his vest and his flowy pants and his little fez hat. 

Later that night, after they return home with a full bucket of candy that Adena insists stay stored away in the kitchen, she opens her Instagram to upload two pictures, side by side.

One, of her and Adena, younger and full of heart-eyes for each other at the Scarlet Halloween Bash. The other, her favorite shot from tonight, of Adena and Jalil together in the kitchen, smiling at each other instead of the camera.

She adds a simple caption and posts it before setting her phone down, turning to spoon Adena under the covers. Adena hums, content, and kisses at her hand, weaves their fingers together.

Her phone lights up in the dark with notifications that she ignores, everyone responding to the photos and—

_Forever and always my #1 Jasmine_


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jalil introduces his girlfriend to his parents

“Do you think J is seeing someone?”

Adena turns from her spot by the vanity where she’s finishing applying lotion to her face.

“Oh, definitely.”

“I  _knew_  it.”

Adena smiles, crawls into bed with her and lays her head in Kat’s lap. Kat sets her book aside on the nightstand and rests her hand on Adena’s back, rubbing soothing patterns.

“Let him have his privacy for now.”

“I wonder who it is,” Kat muses, running her fingers through Adena’s hair. “Do you think it’s that girl he took to homecoming last semester?”

“Chloe? Mm, I don’t think so,” Adena hums.

“I can’t wait to tease him,” Kat says, and her wife laughs.

“Is probably why he hasn’t told us.”

“Um, more like he doesn’t want us making rules.”

“Of course he doesn’t, he’s sixteen.”

“God, don’t remind me,” Kat groans. “Anyway, enough about J’s secret girlfriend. How was your dinner meeting with that gallery director?”

Adena curls further into her lap and sighs. “He was so pretentious, it was exhausting.”

—

Jalil finally admits it during breakfast, a couple weeks later. “I, uh, I’ve been seeing someone.” Then, “I can introduce you after my game tonight, if you want?”

Kat narrows her eyes at him, smirking while she crunches on her granola. “She’s gonna be at your game?”

Jalil blushes and reaches for the carton of orange juice.

“Um, …yeah.”

“So she’s coming to cheer you on,” Kat grins. “Wait, is it one of the cheerleaders?”

Adena rolls her eyes. “Kat, leave him be.” Then, “That sounds great, Jalil.”

 

J is on varsity this year. Of course he is, ‘cause he’s a fucking badass at soccer.

The bleachers are crowded, because the team’s been doing great this season and it’s a pretty big rivalry game. J kicks a fantastic assist from midfield and then his teammate scores the goal, and everyone around them cheers and yells.

“Yes!” Adena jumps, grabbing at her arm and smiling while Kat lets out a loud whistle.

“ _Way to go, J!_ ”

She yells it at the top of her lungs and Jalil briefly waves at both of them, huge smile on his face.

The game ends four minutes later, a 2-1 win, and they hang out celebrating in the bleachers while J finishes up.

Eventually they wander down to the field, once the crowd has cleared, and Jalil is smiling, talking to one of his teammates when they approach him.

Adena skips forward and Jalil catches her in a hug, sweaty and several inches taller than her when he holds her. They trade a few words in Farsi, talking animatedly, and then J steps over to give her a hug too.

“Mom,  _maman_ , there’s uh, there’s someone I want you to meet,” J says, when he pulls away. His demeanor shifts, suddenly shy, and then he holds his arm out, to his teammate standing off to the side. “This is Adrian. Adrian, these are my parents.”

Kat pauses, mouth hanging open for a few seconds before she manages to clamp it shut. She stares between her son and the tall curly-haired boy standing next to him. The muscles of his arm flex beneath his dark skin when he reaches forward to shake Adena’s hand.

“It’s nice to meet you,” he says, polite, and Kat blinks. Then she clears her throat, regaining her composure, and shakes his hand too.

Adena is relaxed, smiling, when she says, “Nice to meet you too, Adrian. And congratulations on your goal. That was very impressive.”

Adrian smiles, looks at J like he put the stars in the sky. “Thanks. It was a great assist.”

Jalil smiles back at him and then turns to face her and Adena. “I should probably mention that I’m bi,” he smiles, a little nervous, and Kat is incredulous when she turns to her wife.

“Did you know?”

Adena bites her lip, laughs a little. “I had my suspicions.”

“Unbelievable. How could you not tell me?” Kat questions, indignant, and Adena smiles at Jalil. Then, “You know what? No, not important right now. C’mere, J.”

She pulls him in for another hug, right there on the sidelines of the almost empty field, and he wraps his arms around her. 

It’s a rare hug, the kind she doesn’t get that often now that he’s a teenager. But he holds her tight, and Kat’s chin is pressed into his shoulder when she says, “I love you. And I’m sorry I’m oblivious, apparently.”

He smiles against her ear. “It’s okay, mom. I love you too.”

Then she reaches her hand up, shielding her mouth when she whispers, “ _Um_ , well done on Adrian.”

J laughs, voice quiet near her ear. “Right? He’s so hot.”

Kat laughs harder and then they both relax their embrace, stepping back.

“Go on,” Kat winks, still smiling, and tilts her head toward Adrian.

J walks over to him and Kat hears him explain that they’re going out for dessert, if he wants to join them.

Adena is giving her a knowing smile when Kat steps forward, wraps her arms around her.  

“Talk later?” Kat murmurs, and Adena hums, presses a brief kiss to her lips.

“Talk later.”


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jalil is born

Adena has been in labor for thirteen hours. And she’s been fully dilated, pushing, for forty-five minutes. Kat doesn’t think she’s ever felt this bad or worried in her life.

“C’mon baby, you got this,” she encourages again, when the next contraction hits. Adena is shaking her head and there are tears in her eyes, exhausted and in pain.

“ _I can’t_.”

The doctor looks up at Adena’s face with at least some semblance of sympathy. “We need you to push, Adena. I know you’re tired, but you can do this. Just take a deep breath.”

Adena is still gripping Kat’s hand, knuckles pale with the force of it, and she cries out, tries to push. She lasts for a few seconds before she stops, shaking her head.

She’s crying harder now and Kat reaches forward, strokes her cheek and wipes the tears. Then she looks to the medical team, helpless and frustrated.

“Isn’t there anything you can do?”

The nurse shakes her head, “I’m sorry. She’s so close, we just need her to push for a little longer.”

Kat gives up on them being helpful, dedicates her full attention to her wife. She reaches up, holds Adena’s tear-streaked face with both her hands.

“Adena baby, it’s okay. Hey, shh, look at me. I know it hurts and I know you’re tired. But, you’re the strongest person I know,” Kat smiles, nodding even as Adena shakes her head. “Yes, you are.”

Kat gets an idea then, eyes how far forward Adena is on the bed, in the stirrups. She doesn’t bother to ask the medical staff, just stands from her chair and scrunches into the hospital bed behind Adena. She settles her legs on either side of Adena’s body, knees bent and feet planted on the mattress.

Kat rubs her back, then speaks softly, “Here, c’mere.” Adena relaxes back into her and Kat rests her chin on Adena’s shoulder, kisses her neck. She holds her hands out on either side for Adena to grip and she does, tangling her fingers with Kat’s. “Together, okay?”

Adena nods with newfound resolve and Kat smiles, kisses her neck again. Her next contraction hits a few seconds later and Kat supports her with her body as she pushes, speaks reassurances into her ear.

“That’s it, baby. Keep going, you got it, you’re doing amazing.”

Adena cries out, trembling against Kat’s frame.

“He’s crowning,” the doctor says. “C’mon, try to give me another big push.”

“You hear that?” Kat encourages. “You’re almost there. You’re almost there baby, and then we get to meet him. We get to meet our son.”

When he’s finally delivered, Adena sinks back into her, boneless. Then there’s a loud cry. A loud beautiful newborn cry, and Kat has tears in her eyes.

Adena is delirious in her arms when she lifts her head, tries to look over to the medical staff. “Is he okay?”

A kind nurse looks over at the both of them, smiling.

“He’s perfectly fine. Healthy lungs,” she jokes and Kat laughs. “And a full head of hair.”

Kat cries, smiling, and kisses the side of Adena’s forehead.

“Please, I want to see him,” Adena says, not even bothering to wipe her own tears, and Kat holds her.

They finish cleaning him up and then they bring him over, still wailing, and lay him against Adena’s chest. Adena reaches forward, strokes at the soft skin of his cheek, and Kat knows without a doubt that she is never going to forget this moment, ever.

Kat reaches her own hand around, hesitant and almost in awe, and touches his tiny fingers. His hand flexes in response and Kat smiles, wipes at her face with her other hand and presses another kiss to Adena’s temple. Then, through smiling tears, murmurs—

“He’s so beautiful. He has your eyes, I can already tell.”


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jalil and Kat's Saturday morning tradition

Adena is standing beside her in the kitchen, finishing up her mug of tea and cuddling into her before she has to leave for a long Saturday at the gallery. Her wife sets the mug down on the counter, turning her face into Kat’s neck, and Kat holds her in a hug.

“I love you. The show’s gonna be great tonight.”

Adena hums, nodding, and Kat kisses her head, lips pressed to the soft cotton of her hijab.

“I love you too.”

Her chin in tucked against the side of Adena’s head when Jalil rounds the corner, still in his pajamas, and points to the large kitchen window with a huge grin.

“Mom, d’you see how windy it is today?”

Adena pulls back, still in Kat’s loose grip, and turns to look at their son with a smile on her face. Kat glances out the window, sees a couple trees swaying in the distance, then nods, wiggling her eyebrows at him.

“You thinkin what I’m thinkin?”

Jalil nods, bouncing on his toes.

“I’ll go get Charlie!” he exclaims, racing back to his room.

“Don’t forget to change into real clothes first, dude!” she calls after him, hears his sarcastic “ _duh_ ” from around the corner.

“Charlie?” Adena questions, looking up at her in confusion, and Kat laughs.

“The kite he got for his birthday, he named it Charlie,” Kat tells her, and Adena shakes her head, smiling.

“Dare I ask why?”

“It’s short for Charlie Parker.”

Adena tilts her head at her, and she’s about to explain when—

“The jazz musician?”

Her voice is full of confusion, which is understandable, but also, “You know who Charlie Parker is? ‘Cause I definitely had to ask. He’s been spending too much time with Ty.”

Adena laughs and reaches for her purse, knows that she’ll be running late if she doesn’t leave soon.

“There was an amazing photography exhibit on the Harlem Renaissance, a few years back. That’s how I know the name. But the kite…” she trails off, trying to make the connection, and Kat smiles.

“Apparently Charlie Parker’s nickname was Bird.”

Adena shakes her head, moving toward the front door. “That’s…”

“Weirdly clever? I know,” Kat finishes, and Adena is still smiling when she leans in to give Kat a kiss goodbye.

“Have fun at the park today,” she murmurs, and Kat nods into her forehead.

“Always.”

“Bye, Jalil! I love you! See you tonight!” Adena calls out, loud enough for him to hear.

There’s a muffled, “Bye,  _maman_!” a couple seconds later, and then Adena kisses her one last time before she’s out the door.

She’s barely made it back to the kitchen to grab a second cup of coffee when her eight-year old rounds the corner again, fully dressed and holding the large bird kite in his arm.

“You’re not even dressed yet,” he huffs, and Kat leans on the counter, takes a leisurely sip of her coffee.

“It’s been like…seven seconds. I was talking to  _maman_. Plus, you still need to eat breakfast.”

She hears him say, “ _way more than seven seconds_ ,” under his breath, but he carefully sets Charlie on the ground and then plops down in a chair at the kitchen table with a sigh.

“ _So_  good. We gotta sign you up for drama club. This is some pure talent, right here,” she grins, and Jalil rolls his eyes at her.

 

It’s a sunny Spring morning when they make it to the park, chilly wind whipping through the air, and Kat stares up at the blue sky, looks around at the clearing of grass that they’ve found.

“What do ya think, J? Right here should be good, yeah?”

He holds the kite tight to his body, careful not to let it get swept away from him, and nods back at her.

“Yeah, I think so.”

It takes a couple attempts to get the kite to catch the wind properly and really lift off, but J’s much better at it now than when he first got the kite. He hardly needs her help anymore to get it going.

Jalil holds the spool of string with such focus and Kat stands a few feet to his left, watching him with fondness. Charlie is high in the sky now, bright colors trailing in the wind, and a few other scattered park-goers glance up at the kite with smiles.

She’s about to ask him about school, about his friends, maybe about what his Uncle Ty’s been teaching him, but then Jalil speaks first, staring up at Charlie when he says—

“Mom, do you think I’m a faggot?”

The question startles her and she nearly drops her thermos of coffee, clutching it between her hands and staring at her son. J glances at her, eyeing her reaction, before he returns his focus to the kite.

“Wh- …J, did someone at school call you that?”

He nods up at the sky instead of at her, steers the string of the kite when a particularly strong gust of wind hits.

“I know it’s a mean word. For boys who like each other,” Jalil says, and Kat listens intently, trying to figure out where this is going. “But, I don’t think he meant it that way. I think…he called me that because some of my friends are girls, and I like hanging out with them too. So,” he turns to her again, holding the kite steady. “Does that mean I’m a faggot?”

“Because you like hanging out with girls too and not just the other boys?” Kat asks, to make sure she understands. She’s trying to quell her anger for Jalil’s sake, but it’s hard and she really wishes Adena were here right now, to help steady her.

“Yeah.”

Kat takes a slow breath and stares up at the kite flying in the wind.

“Well, first of all, let’s stop using that word, ok?” J chews at his lip and nods. “But no, I don’t think you’re… a sissy? Maybe that’s the right word, for what he meant?” Kat says it like a question, searching Jalil’s face to see if that’s what he’s getting at, and he nods again. “But even that’s like…” she pauses, frustrated and trying to find the right words. “Basically saying stuff that girls like isn’t good, and that it’s bad for you to like some of those things.”

She breathes in the fresh air, blinks at the clear blue sky and tries to think of how to explain this to him.

“ _Maman_  and I, we’ve raised you to let you be whoever you want to be, as long as it doesn’t hurt other people,” she says. “To like whatever and whoever you like. But some kids don’t have that, boys especially. They think boys are only allowed to like certain things. But that’s not true.”

“Yeah, that’s really dumb,” J says, tone matter of fact, and Kat smiles at him.

“Super dumb,” Kat agrees. “So this kid who called you that… to him it seems like you’re breaking the rules, for what boys are allowed to do. And it makes him uncomfortable…maybe even a little jealous. Does that make sense?”

Jalil looks at her, with those eyes that never fail to remind her of Adena, and gives her a small smile.

“He doesn’t know the rules are fake.”

Kat nudges his shoulder affectionately, reaches out to ruffle his curly hair.

“Exactly.”

“I think Uncle Ty knows, that the rules are fake,” J considers, and damn if he’s not the most perceptive kid.

Because he gets it, in his own kid language.

“Totally,” she smiles in agreement. “And look, Aunt Sutton loves him for it.”

She can tell that Jalil is thinking hard, is processing everything that she’s said to him, and she hopes that it helps, that he’s able to keep his confidence in what he enjoys.

“Thanks. Can you steer for a minute? I need some water,” Jalil says, holding out the kite handle to her, and she smiles.

“Sure.”

“Don’t crash him,” he warns, absolutely serious, and Kat presses her lips together to keep from laughing.

“It was  _one_  time, J. It won’t happen again, I promise.”


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jalil has a nightmare

She’s been a light sleeper for as long as she can remember. Maybe it’s all the years she’s spent travelling, all the nights she’s spent in a bed that wasn’t permanently hers. But it doesn’t take much to wake her.

Kat, however, is whole different story. Kat can sleep through sirens on the street below, can nap in a room where people are talking.

So it’s no surprise, really, that a shift in the room, the sound of small feet padding across the carpet and the rustling of the duvet, is enough to wake her but not her wife.

She stirs, disoriented, then hears a whispered, “ _Maman_?”

There’s a small hand touching her arm, over the blanket, and she blinks her eyes open, adjusts to the dim light spilling in from the hallway and the sight of her son at the bedside.

“Jalil? What is it,  _joon_? What’s wrong?”

His eyes are wide in the dim light, full of fear, and he grips at her arm, whispers, “ _bad dream”_ into the quiet.

Adena frowns and reaches her arm out from under the covers, pulls her three-year old son closer.

“Is okay,” she assures, voice soothing, and leans forward to kiss his forehead. He burrows into her immediately, clinging to her sleep shirt, and she pulls him forward, into the comfort and safety of their bed. “Why don’t you lay here with me for a bit?” she whispers, already tucking them back under the covers together.

He nods against her chest, still tense, and she rubs at his back to calm him down.

“Do you want to tell me about your dream?” she murmurs, still rubbing his back in soothing patterns, and she feels his body finally start to relax against hers. Jalil shakes his head, otherwise silent. “Okay,” she soothes, “maybe in the morning.”

She lays with him in the quiet, can tell when he starts to drift back to sleep a few minutes later. She considers carrying him back to his room, but she doesn’t want to risk waking him, to risk frightening him again. So she lets him stay this time, gently pries his hands off of her shirt and tucks him into the space between herself and Kat’s sleeping form.

It takes her a while to settle down again, but she drifts back to sleep eventually, protective hand still resting on Jalil’s back.

 

She wakes to the sound of giggling, to Kat’s answering groan and her sleepy confused, “Hey, bud.”

Jalil laughs again, and Adena’s rubbing at her eyes when she hears his answering energetic—

“Hi, mommy!”

Kat meets her eyes, barely awake but smiling, and then her wife grabs for Jalil, making him shriek in laughter, squirming into the blankets.

“’Dena there’s a monster in the bed,” she announces with dramatic flair, “but don’t worry, I got him!”

Jalil rolls around in a fit of giggles while Kat holds him down, curly hair hanging forward in a curtain around their son, and Adena shakes her head, smiling at their antics.

“Mommy! Mommy, stop!” he demands through fits of giggles, and Kat relents, ruffling his hair affectionately before relaxing into the pillows on her side.

“J, how ‘bout we go make some breakfast?” she says, smiling but calmer in her energy. “Give  _maman_  some quiet time to pray.”

He nods, kicking the blankets away from his legs, and scurries toward the edge of the bed.

“I want orange juice!”

“I think we can manage that,” Kat says to him, winking at her in acknowledgment as she crawls out of bed too.

Jalil races out of the bedroom and Adena smiles, looks to her wife still standing in the bedroom.

Kat leans down, presses a brief kiss to her lips.

“Mm, morning,” she hums. Then, “He have another nightmare last night?”

“Yes, unfortunately,” she says, leaning into Kat’s touch.

“Second time just this week. You think we should be worried?”

She frowns, contemplates it for a few seconds.

“I’m not sure. Maybe not yet. But, if it keeps getting worse…” she trails off.

“Yeah.” Then, “Hey, I’m sure it’s fine. Maybe he just needs a better nightlight in his room. I’ll ask him what the dream was about, see if he remembers.”

“Mommy!”

Jalil’s voice comes from a distance, clearly waiting for her in the kitchen with impatience.

“I’m comin’, J, I’m comin’,” Kat answers loudly, grinning at her.

Then her wife is out of the room, leaving her to her own quiet time.

As she goes about her routine, settling into the quiet, she pictures Kat and Jalil together in the kitchen and she smiles, heart full of love and gratitude.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kat and Adena as new parents

It’s been two months since they brought Jalil home from the hospital. And they’re so lucky, because Jalil is healthy and he’s such a sweet baby. 

But it’s also an adjustment, and it’s exhausting.

Adena seems to take to everything more easily than she does, which doesn’t surprise her. She always knew that her wife had natural parenting instincts, had seen it whenever the two of them have been around other people’s kids.

It doesn’t come as naturally to her. But she adores Jalil, and she’s trying. She’s learning.

It’s a little after 1:30 in the morning when J’s cries wake her from her sleep, and she knows that Adena must be awake too because she’s a much lighter sleeper than her. Sure enough, she hears Adena groaning into the pillow beside her, and Kat frowns in sympathy, eyes tired and bleary as she rubs her wife’s back.

“I’ve got it,” she murmurs, dragging herself out of bed and over to the side of the room where Jalil’s bassinet is.

“Hey there, baby J,” she coos quietly, scooping him up and starting to rock him. “Shh, you’re okay.”

Jalil’s crying persists, even louder, and she takes him out of the bedroom and into the living room so that Adena can rest.

She keeps trying to rock him, to do what she can to soothe him. But it’s not working. She’s a little sleep delirious, and Jalil won’t stop crying no matter what she tries to do to comfort him.

She sucks at this. She knows she sucks at this. And in the late-night darkness of her sleep deprivation, she feels the emotional frustration welling up from inside of her.

She hears the bedroom door open a couple minutes later, and sighs because she knows her attempts to allow Adena some rest have failed. Adena is calm and gentle as ever though, murmuring, “Here, let me try,” and holding her arms out.

She carefully hands Jalil over to her and then her wife holds their son close, starts bouncing and rocking him in the dim light of their living room.

Jalil’s crying slowly quiets and Adena continues, doesn’t stop until Jalil is calm and drifting off to sleep again.

Kat’s arms are crossed against herself, tears welling in her eyes, when she turns around and re-enters the darkness of their bedroom.

Jalil doesn’t need her, he needs Adena. Which makes sense, because Adena is his mom.

As soon as the thought passes through her mind, her heart swells with guilt and sadness at the same time. She knows it’s fucked up that the thought even crossed her mind. They’re  _both_ his moms.

It’s just that tonight, and a lot of the time if she’s being honest with herself, it doesn’t feel that way.

She crawls back into bed, buries herself under the covers and hopes that Adena doesn’t notice anything.

Adena settles back in a minute later, rubs her hip and spoons closer to her, and she tenses on instinct before she can catch herself.

Her wife pauses, stilling her hand but keeping it there, warm against her.

“What’s wrong?”

A small sob breaks out of her, against her will, and she turns her face into her pillow, tries to force away everything that she’s feeling right now. Because it’s late and she’s just tired, and it’ll be okay if Adena would just drop it and let her fall asleep. But of course, she doesn’t. Because that’s not the woman she married.

“Kat?” Adena gently turns her until she’s on her back and Kat reaches up to cover her face, embarrassed. “Talk to me, baby. What’s wrong?”

Her palms are pressed to her eyelids and tears are still leaking out, tracking down her cheeks, and the first thing out of her mouth is a choked—

“ _He doesn’t like me_.”

It’s not quite what she means, doesn’t really name everything that’s eating at her right now. But it must be close enough, because she hears the emotion in Adena’s voice when she answers—

“ _What_?” Then, “Kat, honey, he’s a baby.”

She says it with all the gentleness in the world, and she thinks Adena means it to be comforting, self-explanatory. But her words have the opposite effect, heart sinking and making her want to curl in on herself.

She finally pulls her hands away from her eyes, and even though it’s pretty dark in their room, there’s enough light that she can see Adena’s face. Which means that Adena can definitely see hers. Her wife’s eyes are brimming with her own tears, concern written all over her face.

“What’s this about?”

She’s staring at the darkness over Adena’s shoulder when she answers in a whisper—

“I’m bad at this. We both know I’m bad at this.”

“Bad at what? Helping him to sleep? Kat, he’s—”

She shakes her head, interrupting Adena.

“Being his mom.”

Adena freezes, voice falling silent, and Kat finally looks her in the eye again, now that she’s admitted it. Then—

“Oh,  _Kat_ …”

Adena pulls her into a tight embrace, settles back into the pillows with Kat’s head on her chest and her arms wrapped protectively around her. She turns her face into the warm skin of Adena’s neck, drawing a shaky breath.

“You’re not bad at this,” Adena soothes, rubbing her back.

“Don’t lie to me.”

“I’m not,” her wife answers, quiet but fierce. “You love him  _so_  much, I can see it every time you’re with him, or even just when you talk about him. And I know you would do anything for Jalil, for both of us.”

“That’s not what I’m talking about,” she sighs.

“I know it’s not, but is what really matters,” Adena answers, voice soft. “The other stuff will come with time. I have so much faith in you.”

“Glad at least one of us does,” she says, voice muffled against her wife’s neck, and she feels her body finally relaxing, breath evening out.

Adena runs her fingers through her hair, leans down to kiss her forehead.

“I love you. Always.”

She smiles for the first time since waking up, and kisses Adena’s neck, snuggling in to try to sleep again.

“I love you too.”

“Let’s talk more about this in the morning, okay?” 

“Okay.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jalil asks for dating advice

At first she thinks it’s just his teenage moodiness again, which has become frustratingly common lately. She gets it. He’s thirteen and it’s a weird and difficult age to be.

She and Adena have both done their best to adjust to parenting in the teen years, to slowly give J more privacy and autonomy. Or, as her wife would say, to support his own process of becoming.

Sometimes it’s annoying as shit and sometimes it makes her sad, because J is still kind and wonderful but he’s definitely a little more closed-off these days.

So when he’s unusually quiet when he gets home from soccer practice, she’s thinks it’s just more of this new normal and she doesn’t push it.

But then, after he showers, Jalil sits down at the kitchen table with his homework instead of in his bedroom.

Kat acts nonchalant, just gives him a brief smile and tries not to act too surprised even though she’s curious. She focuses on chopping ingredients for dinner and casts a glance at him every couple of minutes.

He’s looking down at a book, but he doesn’t seem to be turning pages, and—

“Hey, mom?”

He looks up at her, warm brown eyes blinking at her with uncertainty, and he fidgets with his pencil on the table.

Kat smiles, tilts her chin in acknowledgement while she keeps chopping. “What’s up?”

J is quiet for a few seconds, and she knows that face. She knows when her son has something important on his mind. She sets the knife down on the cutting board.

“How did you and  _maman_  start dating?”

It’s not at all what she’s expecting him to say and it makes her smile, scrunch her nose at him.

“What makes you ask?”

He shuts his book and folds his hands together on the table, glancing down to avoid her eyes. “There’s, um, there’s a girl, in my class…”

A slow grin spreads across her face and she arches her eyebrow at him, folds her arms across her chest. “Oh?”

J looks up at her and rolls his eyes, faint blush coloring his cheeks. “Shut up.”

She holds her hands up in mock defense, still smiling. “I didn’t even say anything.”

He gives her an embarrassed scowl. “You didn’t have to.”

Kat sighs, relaxing, and goes for a gentler approach. “Okay, so…there’s a girl in your class.” Then, “Do you like her, as maybe more than a friend?”

J nods, finally meets her eyes again even though he tucks his chin into his hand. “Yeah. But…I don’t know what to do.”

“What to do about what?” her wife chimes in, catching the last bit of their conversation as she enters the kitchen.

Adena gives her a brief hug from behind, kisses her cheek, and Kat knows this means Adena is done working from home for the evening, that she’s ready to join them and break from editing photos.

She levels Adena with a brief look, rather than trying to explain, and gives her a quick wink out of Jalil’s line of sight.

“Have you thought about just telling her how you feel?” she asks her son, and Adena’s eyes widen, lips pursing as she pretends to busy herself with helping prep dinner.

“In  _person_?” J asks, like she’s out of her mind. “Uhh, no way.”

Adena laughs, before she catch herself, and Kat shares a smile with her wife.

“He asked about how we started dating.”

Adena’s eyes light up, recalling the memories, and she looks over at Jalil.

“It was very romantic,” Adena starts, and J rolls his eyes like he’s embarrassed by his moms, even though she knows he’s low-key intrigued. “Your mom and I, we had a special connection even though we were both scared to say something about it. But one night, after a difficult day, your mom showed up outside of my building, and she confessed how she really felt.  _In person_ ,” she finishes, teasing, and J looks between them curiously.

“Yeah, I was pretty awesome,” Kat nods, acting cool, and Adena gently shoves at her.

“Oh, please. You looked like you were going to throw up,  _azizam_.”

Kat scoffs, turning to J who is now laughing at them.

“I was  _nervous_ , okay?” she says, pointing her finger. “What matters is that I said something,” she tells J. “And  _maman_ , she totally could have turned me down and that would’ve been her right. She didn’t owe me anything. But I wouldn’t have known how she felt in return unless I said something.”  

Adena smiles, steps up next to her to wrap her in a side hug. “And it worked out very well for her.”

She leaves out the part where it got complicated, because he doesn’t need to know the whole story right now.

“Wait, I thought you fell in love at the airport,” Jalil says, re-calling the story he’s been told ever since he was little. “Or did you make that up?”

“No, we did, J. That’s real,” Kat assures, and Adena smiles into her shoulder. “But  _maman_ knew how I felt. That’s why I came to the airport for her. That happened later.”

“So…you think I should tell her.”

“Yep.”

“But what if goes really bad?”

The question makes her heart soar even as it hurts for his fear of rejection, because Jalil is still Jalil even though he’s getting older. He’s still the same kind-hearted thoughtful kid who trusts his parents enough to be open.

“Then it goes bad, and it’ll suck and hurt for a little while. But at least then you tried and you’ll know how she feels instead of wondering.”

Adena lets go of her and walks back around to continue preparing dinner, while J considers her statement for a few seconds.

“That sounds terrible.”

She hears her wife laugh behind her, and Kat steps forward to where J is sitting, ruffles his curly hair in a comforting gesture.

“You got this, dude.”  

He groans and hides his face in his arms.


	11. Chapter 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Adena is pregnant

Questions during open session at the board meeting take  _way_  longer than she’s expecting. It turns into tangent after tangent and she fights the impulse to scream. Because all she wants to do is present the fundraising updates and get through this meeting so that she can get home to her wife.

She knows that Adena is self-sufficient, and rationally she knows that she’s safe and fine. But her wife is also now six months pregnant, pushing towards seven, and Kat wants to be there for her as much as she can.

She manages to sneak a text to Adena, letting her know she probably won’t be home until close to 8, and then sighs and resigns herself to sit through the rest of this meeting.

 

 

When she gets home, the lights are on in the living room but Adena isn’t there.

“Babe?”

She steps out of her heels, hangs her coat up on the hook and then heads for the bedroom. The sight that greets her makes her heart stop, because Adena is sitting in bed, back to the headboard, and Adena has tears streaming down her cheeks.

“What’s wrong?” she rushes, sitting on the edge of the bed. “Is the baby—”

“Is okay,” Adena sniffles, wiping her eyes. “We’re fine. Sorry to scare you,” she says, giving her a watery smile.

Kat leans forward, cups Adena’s face with her hand and wipes at her tears.

“Baby, why are you crying?” She can’t shake the feeling that something is wrong, and she searches Adena’s face for answers.

“Is just the hormones,” she says, giving another sniffle and reaching for the tissues on the nightstand. Kat shifts and helps her grab the box. “They keep making me cry, even when I don’t have a reason to.”

Kat frowns. “Really? I haven’t seen you cry the past few days…”

Adena looks down at that, touches at the duvet with a quiet shame that betrays her. “I try not to,” she says. “I don’t like to worry you.”

Anger flares up in her chest, on instinct, but she takes a slow breath to quell it. Because she knows the anger is just a mask for the hurt, because she hears what Adena isn’t saying. That her wife has been trying not to cry in front of her, has apparently been crying on her own when Kat isn’t there to see it.

She crawls onto the bed, careful not to jostle Adena when she climbs past her and under the covers at her side. Then she reaches her arm out, wraps her arm around Adena and pulls her into her side.

“Dena, you’re pregnant.” She holds her closer, protective, and kisses her hair. “I worry about you regardless. If your body needs to cry, then just cry.”

She reaches her other hand over to Adena’s t-shirt clad baby bump, rests it there and rubs calming circles.

“But you hate to see me cry,” Adena mumbles into her neck, and Kat sighs.

“Because I love you, and seeing you so sad just does things to me,” she says, but Adena makes a sound of protest. Kat is quiet for a moment, processing, and she knows what this is about, so she just admits it. “And also because big vulnerable emotions still freak me out sometimes.”

Adena doesn’t say anything, but she hums and holds her tighter, snuggles in even closer, and it’s all the answer she needs. That’s what this is about.

“I get it,” Kat whispers. “But that’s my own shit, and I’ll deal. This is more important. Please don’t hide things for my sake.”

Adena sighs, releases a long slow breath and fully relaxes into Kat’s embrace. “ _Asheghetam_.”

It makes her heart flutter and she smiles, content to hold Adena like this for the rest of the night. “I love you too. You and the baby. I love you both so much it’s ridiculous.”

She feels Adena smile into her skin, wet from her tears, and then there’s a nudge against her palm. She thinks she imagines it, hardly even notices but—

“He’s kicking right now,” Adena says, as she’s gotten in the habit of sharing with Kat.

“I know, I-I felt it,” she says, voice full of awe, and Adena lifts her head, eyes wide. “Babe, I think I felt it.” She gently tugs at the seam of Adena’s t-shirt, slides her hand under to rest against bare skin. A couple seconds later, it happens again. She’s sure of it this time. “Oh my god.”

She feels tears welling up in her own eyes, and Adena is beaming. “You can finally feel him too?” she searches, as if she can’t quite believe it.

Kat nods, keeps her hand in place as she slides down the bed, until her face is at eye level with Adena’s stomach. She thinks Adena might be crying again, but it doesn’t matter because there’s tears on her cheeks too, and she leans in to kiss at Adena’s stomach, where she felt the kick.

“Hey there, bud. It’s nice to meet you.”


	12. Chapter 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: Jalil at Kat or Adena's work

“You wanna go high?”

They’re down to the last block before they get to the gallery and pedestrian traffic is always heavier here. She looks down at J, waggles her eyebrows, and he bounces and claps his hands with the enthusiasm only a three year-old can truly muster.

“ _Yes!”_  he squeals, giggling louder as she hoists him off the sidewalk and onto her shoulders. “You know the rules though, dude,” she warns, reaching up to hold his knees securely.

“Gotta hold on with both hands,” he answers, small palms already touching the hair at the top of her head.

“Smart man.”

A woman carrying a bag of groceries smiles fondly at the both of them, at their small display of silliness and joy in the midst of the drudgery of commuter traffic, and she smiles back, starts walking with her son perched on her shoulders.

“I’m taller than  _everybody_ ,” he marvels. She strides through the sea of pedestrians and her shoulders shake with laughter at his antics. He giggles too, delighted, and sometimes it’s the stupid little things like this that make her day, honestly.

“Sure are. You excited to hang with  _maman_  at work?”

“Uh-huh,” she hears, and she can imagine his little head nodding, distracted by all the city sights around him.

She gets to the gallery a few minutes later, sets her purse down on a chair near the entrance, and her shoulders are starting to ache.

“Hey, Kat.” She turns and Simone is there, smiling at the both of them. “Hang on, Adena’s in her office, let me go grab her.”  

“Thanks.” Simone walks away and she shifts a little under Jalil’s weight, taps his knee. “You ready to come down, J?”

“Noo! Not yet!”

She rolls her eyes but stays put, lets him stay perched on her shoulders, because she knows he’s waiting for Adena to see them. And sure enough—

“ _Maman_!” Jalil shrieks, and Adena is on the other side of the room, walking towards them, but Kat can already see the amusement on her face.

“Hey, babe,” she smiles, and her wife leans in to kiss her hello.

“Hi.” Adena’s eyes look tired when she pulls back, but there’s a joy there, at seeing the both of them at work, and her gaze shifts up. Then her eyes crinkle, nose scrunching at him, and Jalil starts laughing again. “Hello to you too, Jalil.”

“I’m  _way_  taller than you now,” he says, in lieu of greeting, and Kat can’t see his face, but she can hear the way he says it and it makes her laugh. Adena narrows her eyes at him, holds in her smile as she purses her lips.

“Mm, not for long. Mommy’s got a meeting to go to.” Adena meets her eyes, a silent exchange, and Kat winks at her.

“Alright baby J, we’re goin’ down,” she warns, reaching up to hold his body more securely as she bends her knees, lifting him off.

He squeals, loud and dramatic for no reason, and if they weren’t at the gallery she’d tickle him in retaliation for it.

“Shh, it’s quiet voice time now, ok?”

He pouts for a second, but this isn’t the first time he’s been with Adena at the gallery for a couple hours and he understands.

This is the trade-off sometimes, of trying to minimize the number of days he’s with a nanny. And it works for the most part, somehow. But occasionally there are donors and people in suits, people who don’t give a fuck about her part-time status and her family’s precariously balanced schedule, who don’t care about scheduling a dinner meeting last minute when her wife is also preparing for a new opening.

She reaches up, cups Adena’s face for a moment while Jalil stands between them.

“I love you,” she murmurs. “And I’m sorry this is such a pain.”

Adena nods into her touch, says, “it’s okay,” with all of the care and understanding in the world. “We got a lot done earlier, we won’t be too much longer here.”

“Ok, well that’s good. See you in a couple hours at home?” Adena nods again. “I’m not letting them keep me there past eight, no matter how many thousands they’re ready to cough up for a charitable tax break.”

Adena quirks her eyebrow, smiling, because they both know how much she hates this schmoozing part of her job. “See you then,” she assures, pecking her lips again, and then Kat squats down to eye-level with her son.

“Be good for  _maman_ , ok? You might be asleep when I get home, but I promise I’ll be there in the morning.”

She holds out her arm for a hug and he leans into her, ducks his head against her collarbone. “I love you,” she says, kissing his curly hair before she lets him go.

She doesn’t linger after that, knows that if she stays any longer she’ll be too tempted to ditch this meeting entirely. But she hears Adena ask Jalil about his day, and she hears the start of his excited rambling response before the door shuts behind her. There’s still a smile on her face when she reaches the crosswalk.


End file.
